Customer Reviews

Avengers '67 - Set 1, Vols. 1 & 2

5 star:		(14)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Following the huge success of the first filmed series of The Avengers, starring Patrick MacNee as debonair British agent John Steed and his cool, sophisticated partner Mrs. Emma Peel, the producers opted to make the next batch of 26 episodes in color, to be broadcast in 1967. In order to accomplish this, foreign backing was necessary, and the American networks were approached. The US had broadcast the black and white season four as a mid-season replacement, and were interested in moving forward with a color season in prime time, however they only provided enough backing for 16 episodes initially. Another challenge was that Diana Rigg was not particularly keen to film another season of the show, and demanded a huge salary increase in order to secure her participation. She got the money, but it was made clear it would be her second and last season with the show.

Apart from the use of color film, there were other subtle changes to the show for this fifth season. Both Steed and Emma were given new apartments and Mrs. Peel a much more stylized wardrobe. The device of ending each story with the two leads driving off in a variety of vehicles was abandoned and instead a tag scene was used to introduce each story, where Steed informed his partner that they were needed in a variety of humorous ways. Each story title was also given a two-line subtitle. After completion of the first batch of 16, the American backers did provide finance for a further 16 but asked for both the subtitles and tag scenes to be dropped, and also requested that Mrs. Peel's wardrobe became more recognizably en vogue.

After only 8 episodes were completed, producers Brian Clemens and Albert Fennell left the show after a disagreement and the new producers opted not to continue with Mrs. Peel and began their own interpretation of the show. It wasn't long before Clemens and Fennell were back in charge, but the 67 series ended with "Mission highly improbable," although Rigg was brought back in 1968 for the one-off "The forget me knot," to introduce her replacement Tara King. This episode is included in this release as a bonus episode.

In terms of storylines, acting and the wonderful interplay between the two leads, there is little difference between this color season and the preceding black and white stories and the show had really reached its zenith by this point. Certainly in terms of popularity and ratings, it was never as successful again. Interestingly, several of these stories are in fact remakes of earlier episodes from the Mrs. Gale era. "The joker," "The correct way to kill," and "The $50,000 breakfast," are all remakes, whereas "The return of the Cybernauts," is a sequel to an earlier Steed/Mrs. Peel adventure.

Fans of The Avengers will of course be delighted to have these discs, and I'd highly recommend them to any other fans of the sci-fi/fantasy genre, and indeed fans of the 60's spy format. If you've ever seen the dreadful movie featuring Ralph Fiennes and Uma Thurman, don't let that put you off. These stories are the real McCoy!

First set of 1967. This saw the Avengers to go colour and more episodes. These are some of the best Avengers, where the pairing of Mackee and Rigg well settled into their roles, with great scripts, really playful story lines.

1) "The See-Through Man" - "Steed Makes a Bomb - and Emma is put to sleep" has Emma and John fighting an enemy agent, ala invisible man, but our pair knows seeing is not always believing
2) "The Bird Who Knew Too Much" - "Steed Fancies Pigeons - And Emma gets the bird" has a villain using carrier pigeons to further his evil plans and the object isn't birdseed!
3) "The Winged Avenger" - "Steed goes bird watching - and Emma does a comic strip". This episode one of my favs, has a comic strip avenger come to life to seek vengeance. Jack MacGowan makes a guest role that is great fun.
4) "From Venus With Love" "Steed is shot full of hole - and Emma sees Stars" The British Venusian Society is brewing a conspiracy that Steed and Emma must foil
5) "The Fear Merchants" - "Steed puts out a light - Emma takes a fright" Businessmen go on a retreat to relax, instead come back to die, actually being frightened to death by their phobias. It's up to Steed and Emma to find out who is behind this deadline plot
6) "Escape in Time" - "Steed Visits a barber - and Emma has a close shave" One of the best episodes has criminals escaping the law by going back in time. The costumer has Emma meeting Matthew Tyson who puts Emma into stocks.

Classic episodes with the stories, acting and tongue-through-cheek antics at their best. Directing turns done by Roy Baker, Gordon Flemying and Robert Asher.

This is a super set! The Avengers, Patrick Macnee as John Steed and Diana Rigg as Emma Peel, are at their best. Some of the best 67 episodes are on this one. The Fear Merchants is a very enjoyable one. It is about this organization who finds out people's fears and makes them mad. You'll have to watch the episode to find out why they are doing it. From Venus With Love is a classic and well remembered episode. The worst (in my opinion) is probably The See-Through Man. Escape in Time is one of the best episodes ever made. English agents are being killed off by (what you watch when you first see it) people from the past. The Bird Who Knew Too Much is probably the second worst on the tape, but it is still very good. The Winged Avenger is also a classic about this comic book character (someone dressed up in a costume) killing people. This set over all is one of the best '67 sets.

Every director and film editor should learn from this series. How such elaborate stories are tautly scripted into 50-minutes TV installments with amazing results is one of the major reasons of the Avengers' success. One-liners are so skillfully cued to the next scenes that they deliver the desired effect, be it humorous, suspenseful, or any other. Combining mystery, suspense, humor, irony, sci-fi elements, spoofs on spies and villains, playful seduction, the series delivers the perfect, unique mix that not only entertains but stimulates and nourishes the mind. Mrs. Peel, Steed and the other known and unknown guest stars, all deliver their lines and performances with detailed perfection. Seeing Mrs. Peel and Steed interact with each other is a delicious experience. They both remind us that delicate and demured sexuality are eternally most satisfying and stimulating. I estimate that after buying one set of the Avengers you will end up buying them all. On this re-mastered DVD's format, the Avengers seems so fresh as if filmed today.

I have enjoyed The Avengers since the 1970s. The quality of the transfers have surpassed my best expectations for both video and audio quality. The color episodes positively jump off the screen, and the audio is the best I've ever heard. I think only a High Definition transfer could surpass these disks. Unfortunately, there is little additional material for which the DVD format is becoming known. It would be great to have production notes, scripts, UK (on ITV) and USA (on ABC-TV) airing dates, and maybe some history of how the show came about and how the British ABC (as in Associated British Corporation) Productions folded. I was also pleased to see that the original production company logos had been maintained. In the TV syndicated shows, the ABC logos were chopped off, much to the detriment to the authenticity of the show. In this day when Screen Gems, Desilu/Paramount, and Columbia logos are lost to history, it was good to see the shows maintained as they were originally produced.

If you liked the Avengers, or just enjoy dry humor and wit, then this is for you. These are the best of the Avengers series, and in color, Emma Peel never looked finer.
Very reasonably priced for the number of episodes included, though there almost no "extras" which would have been a welcomed addition. Money well spent.

Prior to 1967, "The Avengers" was yielded in black-and-white. Going to color was a definite improvement!

This DVD package, (2 DVDs, individually cased and further packaged in a box, this "Set No. 1" color-coded BLUE), is ONE of FOUR sets for the 1967 episodes. The marketing of "The Avengers" can be quite confusing so I wanted to get that information out up front. This is also the BEST way to buy the DVDs (by the "set") for any season, from 1963 through 1968.

1967 was Diana Rigg's last full season as Steed's partner. Her career really launched in 1965 from this fine series in her role as Mrs. Emma Peel, the sexy and lively partner to the refined secret agent Englishman, John Steed, who was shrewdly played by Patrick Macnee. In fact, in the U.S., most of us didn't even know about Honor Blackman and Macnee's other (earlier) partners until many years later.

Diana Rigg can probably claim about 60% of the credit for the vast number of U.S. audience members who were glued to their TVs when "The Avengers" finally hit here. The other 40% (not forgetting Macnee's fine performances) had to do with the presentation of the series. Starting in 1965, with Rigg, the filmscore was notably updated and played more prominently throughout the story, enhancing the action and suspense. Also, the action itself was boosted. Never a dull moment with Steed and Mrs. Peel. And these episodes were all FUN -- one embraced a sense that Macnee and Rigg were having a great time in making these films. Now that I've seen episodes from "The Avengers'" earlier years, ('63 and '64), I can see that they dragged quite a bit during that earlier era and were much more soap opera-ish.

Each 52-minute episode is futuristic and on the cutting edge of excellent television productions. I know of no series, "The Original Star Trek Series" excepted, which has remained as timeless as "The Avengers". You'll encounter, in these episodes, every nemesis ranging from a time-traveling nemesis to a bird-like, comic book super-hero who knocks off ruthless businessmen.

Here, we're talking about six very enjoyable, action-packed, color episodes:

"From Venus with Love" -- A group of rich individuals, all of whom are dedicated to the future habitation of Venus, are being systematically knocked off. Steed applies for membership!

"The Fear Merchants" - What's the best way to defeat your competition? It's simple! Just find out what they're each personally scared of, (through psychological analysis), and then scare them to death! A great episode -- lots of fun.

"Escape in Time" - A covert group is hiding away international criminals for a cut of their profits by sending them back in time! Steed investigates and, in an attempt to rescue him from danger, it's Mrs. Peel who gets sent back in time to a brutal inquisitor! A superb episode.

"The See-Through Man" - It appears that the Russians have bought a secret weapon which will send Great Britain to its knees -- a formula to make their agents invisible! A quirky, (but unfortunately absent-minded), professor tries to make good on his mistake of being duped into selling the formula to the enemy by helping Steed and Mrs. Peel to recover it but the professor's unethical assistant sees a chance to make some extortion money, which fouls up the good guys (and gal).

"The Bird Who Knew Too Much" -- A shrewd parrot with a great memory and an extensive vocabulary is being used by the Ruskies to transmit secret military information from out of England to behind the Iron Curtain. Steed and Mrs. Peel have to track down the elusive Macaw before it's too late!

"The Winged Avenger" - A madman dons the garb of an ornithological super-hero to make England a better, and kinder, place to live... by killing off ruthless businessmen! Steed and Mrs. Peel are called in to quell this comic-book weirdo. A really great episode.

The storylines of the various "The Avengers" episodes seem absurd to varying degrees as we view them today - but 1967 marked an even higher level of absurdity. This did not diminish my love for the "The Avengers" because the overall series always manifested a "Batman" (TV series) tongue-and-cheekness about it. I mention it only to prepare viewers for this actuality.

The casting in all episodes is spot-on, punctuated with the very best sets and scenic locations. And Rigg's provocative, '60s mod body suits much accentuate her sensual magnetism with the notable change from black-and-white to color.

I'll be reviewing all of the 1967 "sets," (as I mentioned earlier, there are four in all, with 2 "volumes" per set), over the next few days so be on the watch for my comments regarding the other sets at their appropriate sites on Amazon. In the meantime, this particular set garners my highest recommendation!

I had heard a lot about the original Avengers so when they appeared on DVD I decided to just buy all four sets and after watching a couple of episodes I knew I had made the right decision. The fights mostly look fake and most of the props look really silly, but the stories are really clever and unusual, the interraction between Diana Rigg and Patrick MacNee is wonderful and always funny and the costumes are incredible. It's quirky, it's bizarre and it will not be to everyone's taste, but I love this series. In many ways it doesn't feel like it was made more than 30 years ago, especially in the way women are portrayed - particularly Emma Peel, who is at least John Steed's equal and superior to virtually every man she meets. I hope to see more of this series on DVD in the near future.

The quality of the video encoding is very good, except for some strange changes in video speed that occur every few minutes. The scenes will either speed up or slow down for a few tenths of a second. Very annoying.

If you fondly remember that great British import that we watched on TV way back in the 60s then you no doubt know about the content of what you are getting. You are more likely concerned about the quality of the product. Like John might say to Emma, "You scratch my back and I'll scratch your back. Just watch the hat please." John and Emma are back and are here to stay via DVD technology. Being on DVD, the aesthetics about the actual episodes are not in question here. More appropriately one may ask how they look. They look good, very good, excellent in fact.